LaFleur
For the orchestral piece, see "La Fleur" (composition). '"LaFleur"' is the eighth episode of Season 5 of ''Lost and the ninety-fourth produced hour of the series as a whole. It was originally broadcast on March 4, 2009. The fate of those left on the Island after Locke turned the wheel is revealed, as Sawyer, Juliet, and company meet the DHARMA Initiative. Synopsis Previously on Lost * Faraday compares the Island to a skipping record and that it is now "dislodged" in time because Ben turned the frozen wheel. * Charlotte collapses and her nose bleeds after a time shift. Locke says they have to return to the Orchid and presumes the time flashes will stop if he brings "them" back. * A time flash occurs as Locke descends down the well. 1867 or earlier After another time flash, the well at the Orchid site (into which Locke had descended) is gone, leaving Sawyer holding a rope that leads into the ground. He tries to rescue Locke, but Juliet stops him, pointing out that they are now in a time before the well was built. ♪ Miles then draws everyone's attention to something in the distance. They look up and see the back of a gigantic statue. Meanwhile, Locke is underground, and sets the frozen wheel on its proper axis, sending everyone above through a particularly violent time flash. 1974 Afterwards, all agree that this flash felt different, and, noticing that their headaches have faded and their nosebleeds have stopped, they surmise that they are done traveling through time. Sawyer, noticing the well wall is in place again, quickly runs over, grabs the rope mechanism, and jumps in feet first, only to find that the well has been filled in with rocks and earth, and he is standing at ground level. Sawyer says he's going to wait until Locke comes back, when Juliet asks how long he intends to wait, he replies, "As long as it takes." They seek out Daniel who is looking stunned, staring at the ground and repeatedly mumbling "I won't tell." When asked where Charlotte is, Daniel explains she died, then vanished during the last flash. ♪ Sawyer decides that they will head back to the beach to see if their camp is there (or build a new one if necessary), though Juliet notes that they don't really have much of a plan. On the way to the beach, they hear gunshots. Moving towards them, they see a clearing with two Others standing over a woman and a dead man. Sawyer and Juliet move out, rifles at the ready, and Sawyer tells them to put their guns down. One of them fires at Sawyer and is immediately shot by Juliet. The other is then shot by Sawyer. The woman introduces herself as Amy and convinces them to bury the bodies of the two Others and carry Paul, her dead husband, back. As Daniel approaches the sonic fence, Juliet yells for him to stop. Amy pretends to disable the fence, removes or manipulates an object hidden behind a keypad (subsequently revealed to be earplugs), and walks through. Sawyer, Jin, Juliet, Daniel and Miles follow and are knocked out by a high-pitched noise. Amy removes the earplugs from her ears, revealing how she passed through unaffected. Sawyer wakes up in the Barracks recreation room and is questioned by Horace Goodspeed. Sawyer introduces himself as "Jim LaFleur" and invents the cover story that his group was on a salvage boat that wrecked while searching for the Black Rock. Horace tells Sawyer that the group will have to leave the next morning on the submarine. He explains that only members of the DHARMA Initiative are allowed inside the compound, and that Sawyer and the rest of his group are "not DHARMA material." The rest of the group is assembled somewhere outside at late evening, where they are talking about their situation. Miles is concerned, but Juliet is confident that Sawyer can deal with Horace. She then points to the house she used to lived for more than 3 years. Miles asks her if she was a member of the DHARMA Initiative, which she denies. She mentions the Purge, which was also before her arrival on the Island. Daniel still seems to be confused, but then he sees a little girl whom he guesses to be young Charlotte. Afterwards, Sawyer and Horace meet them and Sawyer tells the group what he has achieved. Suddenly, the alarm sounds and everybody takes cover in their houses. The group is brought inside one of the houses where an armed woman is to look after them. As Sawyer and Juliet start to look out of a window, a man with a burning torch, revealed to be Richard Alpert, strolls into the middle of the compound. Horace goes to speak to him, then returns and anxiously asks Sawyer and crew how well they buried the bodies. Sawyer goes outside, ignoring Horace's objections, and tells Richard that he is responsible for killing the two men, then asks him if they buried the bomb. He mentions Richard's meeting with Locke twenty years earlier and tells him that he and his people aren't with the Initiative, meaning that DHARMA's truce with the Others hasn't been violated. After getting the story of what happened to his people, Richard tells Sawyer that they still require justice. Sawyer returns and tells Horace the Others want Paul's body. Horace and Sawyer go to talk to Amy, telling her that they'll face whatever they need to if she doesn't want to give up the body. She agrees to give it up but takes an ankh necklace from around her husband's neck first. ♪ As Sawyer leaves the room, Horace tells him that they can stay for two weeks, when the submarine is scheduled to return to the island. At the dock by the submarine, Juliet tells Sawyer that Locke has already saved them, noting that the flashes have stopped and they are no longer sick, so there is no need to wait for him. She explains that she has been trying to get off the Island for over three years, and that she intends to be on the submarine in the morning despite Sawyer convincing Horace otherwise. Sawyer, however, talks her into staying, initially for just two weeks until the next submarine trip. ♪ 1977 In a security center at the Barracks, Jerry puts on some music and begins dancing with Rosie. ♪ Suddenly, Phil bursts in, angry that the two are neglecting the monitors and worried about what their boss, LaFleur, will say. Jerry attempts to calm Phil but then the two see someone on the monitors by the sonar fence. They identify the person as Horace who appears to be drunk and throwing lit dynamite into the forest. ♪ Despite their initial reluctance the pair run to one of the houses and wake LaFleur, the Head of Security, who turns out to be Sawyer. ♪♪ Sawyer collects Miles, also a security officer, asking "did you bring your Zapper", and the two drive out to the sonar fence where they retrieve a passed out Horace. Sawyer takes the man back to his home, where Sawyer is greeted by Horace's wife Amy. As Sawyer explains what happened, Amy goes into labor. In the infirmary, the doctor reminds Sawyer that the baby is in a breech position and a Caesarean section is needed. The doctor explains that DHARMA women "always deliver on the mainland" and he is inexperienced with such an operation. Sawyer heads to the DHARMA Motor Pool, where Juliet, who is still on the Island well beyond her initial two week promise to Sawyer, is working as a mechanic. Juliet initially objects, saying that she and Sawyer had "a deal," but ultimately agrees to do the procedure, even though the doctor is uncomfortable with the arrangement. Outside the infirmary, Sawyer waits for news of the baby. Jin, who now speaks fluent English, shows up and reports that their grid searches continue, even though they still haven't found any of their people. ♪ Juliet emerges and joyously says that Amy gave birth to a boy. Later, a smiling Sawyer strolls through the Barracks and picks a flower. He returns to the house he now shares with Juliet, as she prepares dinner. He gives her the flower and tells her she was "amazing today." They declare their love for each other and share a kiss. ♪ Horace wakes to find a bespectacled Sawyer watching over him. In a reversal of roles, Sawyer asks Horace how his head feels leaving Horace to respond "It hurts." Sawyer informs him that he missed the birth of his son and inquires about the fight between Horace and Amy that led Horace to pass out in a drunken stupor. Horace had found the ankh which had belonged to Paul among Amy's things, leading Horace to question Amy's love for him. Horace is unsure whether three years is enough time for Amy to get over Paul. Sawyer tells of his love for a girl with whom he had a shot but reluctantly lost his chance. She has been gone for three years and though he had difficulty forgetting her in the beginning, he finds now that he barely remembers her face. ♪ Sawyer states that three years is "absolutely" enough time to get over someone. ♪ In the morning, Sawyer and Juliet are asleep in bed when they are awakened by a phone call. Jin is calling with urgent news, and as Sawyer gets dressed, he doesn't tell Juliet the nature of the emergency. He drives his blue DHARMA Jeep out to the North Valley alone and waits for Jin to arrive in a DHARMA van. They park their vehicles opposite one another and the van's passengers emerge: first Hurley, then Jack, and finally Kate. Sawyer is shocked to see his friends as he takes off his glasses in disbelief. ♪ Trivia * LaFleur means "the flower" in French, and is a common Creole surname according to Sawyer. It is also a common Cajun (French settlers from Nova Scotia who were exiled to Louisiana by the English) name. * Along with and , this is the third Lost episode which takes its title from a main character's pseudonym. *The amount of time that has passed, three years, matches between the time the Oceanic 6 spent off the Island, and the time those left behind spent on it. * This episode is notable for being the first episode to take place equally in two different timelines without one taking precedence over the other - the 1974 timeline following from Sawyer's group's perspective in and the 1977 following from Jack's group's perspective in At the end of the episode the groups converge. *Rosie is wearing a Geronimo Jackson shirt. * This is the first time Sawyer has been seen with no beard since the *A fan-based joke revolving around Richard Alpert and "guyliner" is referenced in this episode by Sawyer who explains to Horace he was referring to his "buddy out there with the eyeliner". The joke has been debunked in interviews with the actor playing Richard (Nestor Carbonell), who has very dark eyelashes. ** Nestor Carbonell once actually wore eyeliner for a role in The Dark Knight. *Paul's necklace is of an ankh, a popular Egyptian hieroglyph for fertility and eternal life. The statue of the Egyptian goddess Taweret carries an ankh in each hand. *The Other shot by Sawyer had a horseshoe tattoo on his upper right arm. This tattoo is popular with sailors, and horseshoes have also been considered a symbol of female fertility: the open ended side of the horseshoe represents the open womb of the woman. *The logo on the suits of Sawyer, Miles and Jin is a five-pointed star, resembling the shape of some sheriff and marshal badges. This is the logo of the DHARMA Security Department. *The logo on the blue overalls Juliet wears has a wrench, and would seem to be the logo for mechanics and vehicle servicing. *3 years is repeated throughout this episode. 3 years before, 3 years later, Juliet trying to get off the island for 3 years, Juliet lived in a barrack for over 3 years, Horace asks if 3 years is long enough to get over someone. *This episode is rated TV-PG-LV. Production notes *Matthew Fox (Jack), Jorge Garcia (Hurley), and Evangeline Lilly (Kate) appear without speaking lines. **Terry O'Quinn (Locke) appears only in footage reused from . *This is the first Sawyer-centric episode since early Season 3's . *This is the sixth episode that takes place entirely on the Island. *This is the final episode of the series to feature a flash-forward. *This is the first episode to be directed by long time editor Mark Goldman. **Goldman ran out of time to finish shooting the episode due to a mudslide at the location of the shoot, causing the final two days of filming to be canceled. The scenes where Paul is killed and finding Daniel mourning the loss of Charlotte were directed at a later date by either Stephen Williams or Jack Bender. Bloopers and continuity errors * The Williams Cyclone pinball machine is visible in the corner of the DHARMA rec room when Horace Goodspeed is questioning Sawyer in 1974. This model was not manufactured until 1988. * Sawyer's beard noticeably changes between real and fake throughout the 1974 portions of the episode. **During the conversation with Richard, Sawyer has a goatee yet just before and after in the scenes inside the house he has a full beard. * When Jerry and Phil go to "LaFleur's" house to wake the head of security, Sawyer opens the door wearing a white T-shirt that matches the ones seen under Phil and Jerry's jumpsuits. However when Sawyer is zipping up his jumpsuit a few frames later, his undershirt has changed to a dark gray color. * Jin had a mustache and a goatee, some serious face bruises, and short hair at the end of and during the recap at the beginning of this episode; however, he has little more than a 5 o'clock shadow, his bruises have nearly healed, and his hair is longer, about collar-length, when this episode continues the scene. * Paul is seen breathing in a close-up shot of his body, just before Juliet says "her friend is wearing a DHARMA Jumpsuit". * The little girl that Daniel presumes to be Charlotte exists in 1974, yet Ben previously mentioned that Charlotte was born in 1979. **The March 19, 2009 podcast revealed that the original script for stated that Charlotte was born in 1970. Damon and Carlton initially said that Rebecca Mader was responsible for the change, though they later admitted that they had changed the birth date as a result of casting a younger actress for the role than they had originally intended. They admit now that it should have been 1970 all along. * During Richard Alpert's visit the Losties are sent into a house, where they meet Heather, who is armed with a Ruger Mini 14 rifle (possibly the same one Jin was carrying in ). This weapon was introduced in 1974, and was hard to acquire for several years. It's remotely possible that DHARMA could have gotten one in 1974, but unlikely. *The Snellen chart, invented in 1862, is used for measuring visual acuity. The version of the chart which appears in the DHARMA infirmary, however, is "Alex Eulenberg's 1-page Snellen Chart"I See: Eye Charts. Alex Eulenberg was born in 1970,Michigan State University: John Bryson Eulenberg November 2005Alex Eulenberg home page making the appearance of an eye chart created by him anachronistic for a 1977 scene. Additionally, Eulenberg's chart does not meet the exacting standards of optotypes nor of Snellen charts, which dictate, for example, the ratios between line-width, letter width, and letter height. *When Sawyer arrives home to find Juliet making dinner, a bottle of merlot is seen on the table with the Swan logo on it. However in , Radzinsky is shocked Sayid knows the name of the station as it hadn't been built and only a select few had known what it was going to be named. Music The Season 5 soundtrack includes the following tracks from this episode: * "Dharma Delinquent" * "La Fleur" Analysis Recurring themes * Amy gives birth. * Paul carries an ankh, the Egyptian hieroglyph is a symbol of eternal life and fertility. * Juliet successfully delivers the baby without letting the mother die. * We see a man playing chess in the Barracks, as we see Sawyer going home. * Sawyer and the others lie about who they are and where they came from. * Paul is killed. * Security was monitoring Polar Bears. * Daniel sees a young Charlotte. * Sawyer and Juliet are together. * Two of the Others are killed. * Daniel says "whatever happened, happened". * The episode takes its name from an alias adopted by Sawyer. * Sawyer refers to Charlotte as "Red", calls Daniel "Mad Scientist" and "Plato", and calls Miles "Mr. 'I Speak To Dead People'", "Bonzai", and "Enos". * Sawyer, the criminal, becomes head of security. * Juliet wears a scarf when fixing the DHARMA van. * Juliet and Sawyer have a black and white telephone. * Sawyer leads the survivors in 1974. Cultural references * The Ankh: The Egyptian hieroglyph is a symbol of eternal life and fertility. Egyptian gods are often portrayed carrying it by its loop, or bearing one in each hand, arms crossed over their chest. The giant statue appears to be holding one in each hand but its arms are by its sides, not crossed over its chest. Paul's necklace was an ankh, which Amy takes from him after he dies. Amy later successfully gives birth on the Island. * The Grateful Dead: Phil and Jerry, brownie eating 1970s hippies, seem to be references to Phil Lesh and Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead. Rosie may be a reference to the reoccurring symbol of roses in Grateful Dead songs and art. In the Grateful Dead "Ramble On Rose", the protagonist's name is Rose. The name of the band Grateful Dead has been attributed to this quote from the Egyptian Book of the Dead: "We now return our souls to the creator, as we stand on the edge of eternal darkness. Let our chant fill the void in order that others may know. In the land of the night the ship of the sun is drawn by the grateful dead." *''Candida: This 1970 song by Tony Orlando and Dawn is playing in a DHARMA station while Jerry is dancing with Rosie. * 'Plato: Sawyer calls Daniel "Plato". Plato was a philosopher in ancient Greece. The "cave allegory" is a famous mythological account from his The Republic, and his "Timaeus" and "Critias" are the source of the story of Atlantis. * '''The Dukes of Hazzard: Sawyer calls Miles "Enos", a reference to Roscoe P. Coltraine's deputy in The Dukes of Hazzard. * Coconut Telegraph: Sawyer says that Horace Goodspeed's drunken behavior will find its way out on the "coconut telegraph," referencing the content of the Jimmy Buffett song from the album of the same name. Literary techniques *In 1974, when Sawyer wakes up from the sonic fence incident, Horace asks him "How's your head?" and Sawyer replies, "It hurts." In 1977, when Horace wakes up from his drinking binge, Sawyer asks him "How's your head?" and Horace replies, "It hurts." *Sawyer explains to Horace how he loved someone (Kate), but let her go. He says he doesn't remember her face anymore, and she's gone and never coming back. The next morning, however, Sawyer sees that Kate has returned to the island. *Daniel sees a little girl he identifies as young Charlotte, as Charlotte said before she died. *As Daniel is explaining that the "record is spinning again" and time is running normally, the camera is constantly revolving around the characters. *Sawyer says "Mmm, somethin' smells good", as he visits Juliet's house at the barracks. Sawyer said "Coffee smells good", as he goes near Kate and Claire at the barracks in *Sawyer, Juliet, Jin, Miles, and Daniel have been living a lie for three years, just as the Oceanic 6 have off of the island. *Sawyer, the career criminal, is now head of security. *In Sawyer referred to himself as the "New Sheriff in Town". *The Oceanic Six go back to the Island after three years in the outside world. Sawyer and his group meet them after living for three years with the DHARMA people. *Horace tells Sawyer he's not DHARMA material. Three years later Sawyer is head of Security. *Amy removes a necklace with an ankh, a hieroglyph meaning life, from her dead husband. *Sawyer picked the alias LaFleur, which means "the flower", to start this episode in his life; he gave a flower to Juliet just hours before Kate showed up, which might threaten this new life. *Sawyer, a professional con man, finds it better to tell the truth to Richard Alpert to prevent bloodshed. *Sawyer gives Juliet a flower and Juliet wears a blouse with flowers. *Miles has doubts about Sawyer's leadership qualities, including asking who put Sawyer in charge, however, in the future, he calls Sawyer "boss". *Sawyer says "son of a bitch" after hearing the report from Jerry and Phil. *Jerry sarcastically asks Phil, after Phil yells at him for not doing his work (watching security monitors), "Ah, mellow out, Phil. W-what's gonna happen, huh? The polar bears are gonna figure a way out of their cages?" *Sawyer claims he and his friends were scientists looking for the wreck of the Black Rock. Unbeknownst to Sawyer, the man he negotiates with was a passenger on the Black Rock. Storyline analysis *Sawyer pretends to be the captain of a ship. *Sawyer decides to wait for John Locke to come back. *Richard and Horace are leaders of their groups and have declared a truce. *Sawyer and his group become members of DHARMA. *Two Others kill Paul. *Sawyer and Juliet become a couple some time during the three years they have spent together in the 1970s. Episode connections Episode references * Sawyer institutes a new con, referencing actual episodes from the Island's history to make his story more convincing: ** The French science team's ship crashing on the reefs and its passengers later landing on the island. ** The disappearance of the Black Rock, which landed on the Island. ** Sawyer's firsthand knowledge of the Black Rock. * Jerry mentions that there are polar bears in cages on the island. * A giant statue is seen by Miles, Sawyer, Jin and Juliet. A large four-toed foot, part of the same statue, was previously seen by Jin, Sun and Sayid. *Juliet mentions that she used to live in the Barracks, and points out her house. * Horace said that they made a truce with the natives. * Juliet tells Miles that the Others wiped out DHARMA and moved into the Barracks. * Daniel refers back to his analogy of comparing the island skipping through time to a spinning record. * Miles makes a joke about the flaming arrow attack. * Sawyer speaks to Richard Alpert about the events that happened in 1954, including the bomb and the fact that he is waiting for John Locke to return. * Daniel mentions Charlotte's death. * Daniel sees a young girl he identifies as young Charlotte, as Charlotte said before she died. Episode allusions *Sawyer makes a reference to the "coconut telegraph". He previously made a reference to the "coconut internet" to Hurley. * When James arrives in his home, we see a bottle of DHARMA merlot. This is the same wine Kelvin Inman was drinking in the Swan. * Sawyer is kept prisoner in the rec room, where Kate, Sayid, and Ben were also kept. Unanswered questions *Why did the Others want Paul's corpse? *Why was the Others murdering Paul not a violation of the truce? References ar:لافلور da:LaFleur de:5.08 LaFleur es:LaFleur fr:5x08 he:לה פלאור it:LaFleur pl:LaFleur pt:LaFleur ru:LaFleur zh:第5季第08集 Category:Sawyer-centric Category:Episodes Category:Season 5 Category:Episodes that are Rated TV-PG-LV